decipher
Americanverb (used with object)
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to make out the meaning of (poor or partially obliterated writing, etc.).
to decipher a hastily scribbled note.
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to discover the meaning of (anything obscure or difficult to trace or understand).
to decipher hieroglyphics.
- Synonyms:
- explain, unravel, solve, comprehend
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to interpret by the use of a key, as something written in cipher.
to decipher a secret message.
-
Obsolete. to depict; portray.
verb
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to determine the meaning of (something obscure or illegible)
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to convert from code into plain text; decode
Other Word Forms
- decipherability noun
- decipherable adjective
- decipherer noun
- decipherment noun
- undecipherable adjective
- undecipherably adverb
- undeciphered adjective
Etymology
Origin of decipher
First recorded in 1520–30; translation of Middle French déchiffrer; equivalent to de- + cipher
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Their goal was not to decipher the symbols, which remain undecoded, but to measure their structural properties.
From Science Daily • Feb. 25, 2026
Brende noted that "the interest is to come together at the beginning of the year to try to connect the dots, decipher, and also see areas where we can collaborate".
From Barron's • Jan. 13, 2026
That said, economists and central bankers have an ongoing intellectual debate to decipher whether AI is indeed the reason for the rise in productivity.
From MarketWatch • Jan. 7, 2026
The recent government shutdown complicated the efforts of economists to decipher where the economy is heading, depriving them of some government-collected data they need to read the tea leaves.
From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 20, 2025
Most of it I do not understand, it is so hard to decipher and I scarcely know any French.
From "All Quiet on the Western Front: A Novel" by Erich Maria Remarque
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
